A Tough February

Two gardening friends died and another friend lost her dad within the past week. Made for kind of a sad passing of time here, and this cold, gray and brown, rag tag winter is no help to the spirit. Oddly enough, both friends were named Linda and both had suffered the indignity of cancer for several years. Both Lindas would put you at ease with their unobtrusive, common humanity. One Linda was one of the most graceful women I've ever ever known. And the other Linda was a lot like me in many ways - odd and quirky - only she was pretty, and had a great, subtle, self deprecating sense of humor that some people just didn't 'get'...
They were both people who loved their lives, even though they weren't dealt "winning hands".
I usually dig up some excuse to miss funerals. I really hate funerals but this time I forced myself to go to a "viewing" and just seeing a few of my living friends there provided a small warm glimmer in the gloom.
I subscribe to the Sierra Club's "Daily Ray of Hope" - it consists of a daily beautiful photo paired with a thoughtful quotation. Coincidentally this was the latest quotation, from another memorable character:

"Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy. "
-- Joseph Campbell

If I didn't know better...

....I might think the groundhog (why are those overgrown rodents a recurring theme in my life????) was wrong.

Perhaps because I am just enjoying the comparatively mild temperatures the last week. Could be the garden show - www.midatlanticgardenshow.com - going on this weekend that I fervently hope to get to. Maybe it is all just wishful thinking, but it certainly feels like spring is around the corner.

Nature has been tossing out little gems for me to gaze upon, tempting me outside again. As I sat here typing, outside the window 2 red tail hawks and a large crow were dipping and diving in some form of combat. There are things happening out there. Sap is rising.
I'll show you!

This appeared down the road the other day! The first baby of the year. They usually have 3 or 4 little colts each spring, but it is quite early. This little one is SO tiny! The women folk around here all squeal with delight when we see them, driving the guys crazy. It's becoming a sport :-).The lemon thyme is putting out fresh leaves. We always seem to have some fresh thyme, but I noticed how lush this looks. Of course those leaves are way smaller than they appear in the picture, measuring no more than 1/4" each in length.I've talked about the mountain mint that grows here. It was a little slip that came home from Baton Rouge with me, and now it is quite a large, healthy patch. It is spreading vigorously with underground runners. I am becoming a bit alarmed. May need to move the berries.The beautiful gray sage is a marvel to me in the winter. As harsh as the weather is, the plant continues to push small leathery leaves. Really a stunning plant! When it warms up a bit I will trim it way back to get rid of the "legs".Finally, what we laughingly call the "terrorist cell" of roving chickens. There are about 6 of them, and that rooster is the ringleader. He's a beauty, by the way, with a big ruffly buff colored neck, and tail feathers that shine in every different color of the rainbow, depending on the light. The rest are mostly hens, with one other rooster who thinks if he hangs around...well.. you know. They come up each day and scratch around in the mulch. When they hear a door, they take off for the trees. When a hawk flies overhead, they are in the trees faster than I'd have thought possible. They react very quickly.
So at any given time, there are roosters crowing from all different directions on the farm. A lovely cacophony.

Spring is Around the Corner...Well Almost!

I was out poking around and found these daffodils that we transplanted last year coming up from the leaves! We are having a brief warm up so I felt compelled to change my home page to a more optimistic one! Thoughts of spring are creeping into my head, but WAIT there is more snow coming this weekend! Yikes! When will it end. The good and bad news from that is that we seem to have had a lot of snow, but in reality it is around 30 inches. Nothing really at all! We love reality! Hope you are enjoying the weather where you are!

catching up and spring cleaning the old files

Admittedly, this is an old collection of Youtube videos of a Michael Pollan interview but I might as well post it here to listen to again some time.

Herb Blog Group Contest(s)

Welcome to our Herb Blog Group Contest!
For the week between Friday, February 27 and Thursday, March 5 you can enter simply by entering a comment in response to this blog entry and take a chance at winning a full year's subscription to The Essential Herbal Magazine! The Essential Herbal is written by, for, and about herbie people and the things they love. It is a grassroots publication that talks about the things you want to know when it comes to herbs.
The following blogs are also participating, so stop over to enter with them for additional chances to win AND the chance to explore some cool blogs. If you are already a subscriber, we"ll just add the free year on the end. Be sure to leave an email addy in your response so that we can reach you if you win!

Possum Creek Herb Farm
Blessings of an Herbwyfe
Garden Chick ***
SunRose Aromatics ***
Herbs from the Labyrinth ***
Patti's Potions ***
PrairieLand Herbs ***
Aquarian Bath ***
The Rosemary House ***
Natures Gift ***
Torchsong Studio ***
The Essential Herbal ***

*** These blogs will be having contests for the next 10 weeks. Be sure to come back!

Entries are closed for this contest. Will announce the winner and put up next week's contest in the am - come back and enter again!!!

food for thought

Punctuating the nutritional crisis that already exists for America’s poor, a new study documents that an average family’s maximum food stamp benefits fall far short of what families need to afford the USDA’s “Thrifty Food Plan.” Robustly sustainable, locally oriented and regeneratively organic food production must be a policy goal everywhere people are hungry, in U.S. cities and countrysides, and around the world.
The report:
http://c-snap.org/upload/resource/RCOHD_Report_Final.pdf

There seems to be a cognitive dissonance in politicians who won't rise and applaud, on camera and in front of the world, the line in a speech that says the children of the working poor will receive a renewal of their health benefits. How pro-child, pro-family is that? Something is very very wrong in this country.

Que Rico Pork!

Sunday nights is my night to cook and I cooked a pork roast. It got rave reviews from the Herbal Husband! It is a recipe from the Three Rivers Cookbook II from the 80's. I usually make slits in the roast and insert slivers of garlic and rosemary and then slather it with dijon mustard. It's good, but this is better and very easy! Here is the recipe:

Roast Pork Fillet in White Wine
"Wonderful on a chilly night"

4 lb. pork loin with bones (I use a 2-1/2 lb. boneless roast)
1-1/2 cups dry white wine
1/2 cup white wine vinegar (I used my blog vinegar)
2 cloves garlic
10 peppercorns
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. thyme leaves
salt & pepper

Combine wine, vinegar, garlic, peppercorns, bay leaf and thyme in a nonmetal baking dish just large enough to hold meat. (I used a Ziploc bag. What did we do when we didn't have these wonderful bags! I know put in a nonmetal baking dish just large enough to hold meat!) Put pork in marinade and refrigerate overnight. Turn pork several times until ready to roast. Drain pork and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour 1/2 cup of marinade over meat and roast 1/2 hour per pound or until thermometer registers 170 degrees. ( I roasted it 2 hours at 325 degrees. The Herbal Husband wants his meat dead and not walking off the plate!) Let sit 15 minutes before carving.

The Herbal Husband said forget the other recipes, this is the one to make! Hopefully I will remember in which book it is! Well, now I have this posting! That works! Hope you enjoy it. I'm looking forward to having a pork sandwich on a nice fresh roll with a lot of the Mayor's Magic Mustard on it! You can get the spice blend for the mustard from The Rosemary House.

More Green and Silver in the Herb Garden!

Believe it or not there is still snow on the ground here! During the brief time last week when the ground was exposed, I snapped some pictures of green growth in the herb garden. The gray green plant in the upper part of the photo is Salvia officinalis 'Berggarten' or Berggarten sage. You can use it just as you would the regular garden sage for cooking. It really shines with its bigger leaves along a border. It is reliably hardy for us in Zone 6. I have had this one bloom, but it does not usually bloom in the northern part of the country. The other spot of gray green toward the bottom of the photo is Thymus argentea 'Hi-Ho' or Hi-Ho Silver Thyme. I really have a hard time wintering this one. I think it likes the spot I placed it in this year. Whoo Hoo! Finally, I got something right!

Here is My Heart for You!

Yesterday I made the Infused Sugar (Bay Laurel) Sugar Cookies that I talked about in an earlier posting. I made them with this cookie cutter that I purchased through a catalog that I used to receive called Gooseberry Patch. I do not think they have the exact cutter anymore. I broke a few of the finger making these, but the Herbal Husband loved the recipe and the thought behind them. He thought the cookies were very tasty and when he said there aren't any herbs in these. I said but there are because it is bay laurel infused sugar. He was impressed. Notes on the recipe
icing sugar is also powdered sugar and the first cookies in the oven I baked for 15 minutes and the next batches took less time. I didn't use the egg white and extra sugar at the end. The Herbal Husband liked them just as well. Hope you do also!

I Think I Found a Solution for the Leaning Arbor!

The Herbal Husband and I have been chasing the feral cats out of our yard for months now. We know the way to get them is by trapping them, but then there are skunks in the neighborhood also. We had one of those in our garage for Halloween one year, but that's another story! I looked out the window while I was fixing breakfast and there was one half of the solution to my leaning arbor! Did the cat want to play with the squirrel? Was it trying to attack it? It finally gave up, climbed down and ran away. Click on the picture to enlarge it. Never a dull moment!

Fear and Loathing in Lancaster

There are a couple of things we've used here in the past couple of days that are interesting.
First, the fear.
The darling daughter is currently performing onstage at school. Last night was opening night, and she called about 2 hours before the start to tell me she needed a blouse. The day had also included an interpretive performance piece that she put together and it had taken place in the last half of the day. She was coming a little unglued. Along with the blouse, I delivered some Bach Rescue Remedy in a spray bottle. Rescue Remedy and I go way back. My sister and I started using it (I think this was the beginning) when we gave our first public talk. That would be Super Sunday 1995 I believe... Borders... discussing teas. We continued using it for public talks, and then the following summer when faire management - in their infinite kindness - nestled a competing booth right next door to us, we starting drinking it straight from the bottle. In fairness, Scotch whiskey in large quantities wouldn't have helped calm us in that situation. But I digress...

Our mother started carrying it with her because she had a disorder that sometimes caused her throat to spasm when she was eating, preventing her from swallowing completely. The Rescue Remedy helped quite a bit in that case. She fell in a restaurant once, and was shaking uncontrollably. She took a dose and watched as her hands stopped shaking almost immediately.

Flower remedies are made with the energy and essense of plants. It is along the same vein as homeopathic remedies. We are currently running a series of articles on creating your own essences by Kristena Haslam in The Essential Herbal.

In any case, the kids were thrilled to have a remedy for their stage fright. The Bach Rescue Remedy was a huge hit. Bach Remedies can be found at herb shops, health food stores, and on-line. Some progressive pharmacies also carry them.

Next up - the loathing.

I am getting too old to be carrying so much extra weight. It's gotta go, and so I'm trying some things that may or may not help. I've heard that good, apple cider vinegar encourages weight loss. It is also said to assist with digestion - like indigestion, heartburn, and reflux. I once listened to a lecture by David Winston, and he talked about the idea that instead of stopping the production of stomach acid to cure those problems, we in fact need MORE acid. I've wondered about that too. It seems that food stays in my stomach forever sometimes. So anyhow, I decided to try the vinegar. Oh. MY.. GOSH... that is some wicked stuff. I think the first time I tried it straight. Don't. Ok? Just don't do that. Next, I tried using a shot glass. One T vinegar, topping it off with water. Only slightly better, but possible at least.

We discussed this a bit on magazine Yahoo! list this week, and I am now mixing it with honey, water, and a little juice. And guess what? I LIKE it! It tastes great!

The real surprise is how it makes me feel. A while back we drank kombucha for well over a year. We brewed the tea, pampered the babies, massaged the mothers, and shared the scoobies. We always said that the drive and determination to open our shop came from kombucha. The vinegar feels a lot like that to me. Lots of energy, lots of confidence and an overall feeling of health. Apparently I DO need more acid.

A couple of words of caution: Never, never, never use distilled white vinegar for such a thing. That is really not for internal consumption. Save it for cleaning. Use ONLY good, live-with-the-mother apple cider vinegar. A few people also said that they knew people who drank too much and seriously injured themselves. Two people wrote in attributing deaths to drinking vinegar, but I strongly suspect that the people who were drinking it were doing so because they were already seriously ill. I am taking 1-2 T per day, diluted.

Lemon Balm in the Herb Garden....Not Quite!

When I was out in the herb garden the other day, I thought OMG, lemon balm in the herb garden. Not an entirely bad thing, but look how much under the grapevine! Don't want this much! I mentioned it to the Herbal Husband. He said it is not lemon balm but that weed! Yikes! Not another weed! Yes, it is purple dead nettle. Thanks to my weed bible, Weeds of the Northeast on page 249, it describes it with pictures and everything, but NOT how to get rid of it. Usually that is pulling it out by hand in this house. Particularly in this location with the grape roots in close proximity. The book calls it A WINTER ANNUAL! It is also in the mint family. So that's why it is working its way into the herb garden! Each plant produces 200 seeds! Don't want that happening. It is just still brutally cold outside. Hopefully next week, we can get out there and take care of it. Hope you are warm where you are!

First they came for the free range chickens ...

(I know, not funny.)

A pause for a political vent. This issue is too dear green to post on the cranky blog.
The world of organic oriented folk is waking up to the fact that Big Brother didn't retire to the ranch with George W.

First a little background:
The UN supports organic agriculture (link). Here is a good summary of the global issue of organic farming versus corporate agribusiness as it relates to sustainability.

So what are we doing in America, the land of the free?
NAIS.

Like I've said for ten years now, Monsanto is Satan.
Monsanto bills being rushed through Congress, set to destroy organic farming.
by Linn Cohen-Cole
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Monsanto-bills-being-rushe-by-Linn-Cohen-Cole-090217-758.html
and
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Monsanto-and-the-Schoolmar-by-Linn-Cohen-Cole-090214-935.html

Learn more here:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/nais_faq.cfm
Take action link is in top right hand corner of page.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been working for over five years to force a National Animal Identification System (NAIS) onto American animal owners.
NAIS does nothing to improve food safety for consumers or prevent animal diseases. This program is a one-size-fits-all program developed by and for big Agribusiness. NAIS will increase consolidation of our food supply in the hands of a few large companies and put the brakes on the growing movement toward local food systems.

Follow this link to take action today!
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/642/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=26665

Sample letter:
Docket No. APHIS-2007-0096
I urge the USDA to withdraw its proposed rule to implement portions of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS), Docket No. APHIS-2007-0096.

The proposed rule mandates the NAIS Premises Identification Number (PIN) as the sole means of identifying properties for USDA animal health purposes. The proposed rule also mandates the use of the NAIS numbering system (i.e. the "840 numbering system") for eartags using official animal identification numbers. Tags using other numbering systems would be required to be linked to a NAIS PIN.

The draft rule is seriously flawed for multiple reasons:

1) Does not substantiate the alleged benefits to animal health. USDA makes general claims about the benefits of identifying locations where animals are kept, but the agency does not address the ability of existing programs to meet this purpose, nor how the proposed rule would improve the capability to identify locations.

2) Ignores the costs and burdens. The proposed rule would substantially increase costs for livestock owners and taxpayers. Costs include the development and maintenance of a massive database; purchase of 840-numbered tags by animal owners; changes by state agencies to make existing programs consistent with the rule; and increased federal government intrusion into the lives and daily activities of farmers and other animal owners.

3) Violates individuals' religious beliefs. Amish, Mennonite, and some other individuals have religious objections to the universal numbering system under NAIS.

4) Creates disincentives for people to seek veterinary care for their animals and participate in existing disease control programs. The proposed rule lists four animal disease programs-tuberculosis , brucellosis, scrapie, and Johne's - and will also impact others. These programs include provisions for veterinary care through vaccinations and testing. Animal owners who object to NAIS may avoid participating in these programs, thereby increasing health risks to the public and farm operations.

5) Adds to the confusion. This rule is the latest in a series of ambiguous and often contradictory documents that the USDA has issued on NAIS. This has created enormous confusion over the intent of the USDA and problems for both animal owners and state agencies.

Moreover, the proposed rule is a significant step towards implementing the entire NAIS program. Thus, the agency should address the fundamental question of whether it should be implementing NAIS at all. In addition to the problems with the draft rule listed above, there are many additional objections to the entire NAIS program:

1) No significant benefits: USDA's assertions that NAIS will provide benefits for animal health are not supported, and actually contradict basic scientific principles.

2) High costs for animal owners and taxpayers: These costs include: (1) the development, maintenance, and update of massive databases; (2) the costs of tags, most of which will contain microchips; (3) the labor burdens for tagging every animal; (4) the paperwork burdens of reporting routine movements; and (5) the costs of enforcement on millions of individuals.

3) Impracticality: The databases to register the properties, identify each animal, and record billions of "events" will dwarf any system currently in existence.

4) Waste of money: The USDA has already spent over $130 million on NAIS implementation, but has yet to develop a workable plan for the program.

5) Diverts resources from more critical needs such as disease testing, disease prevention through vaccination and improved animal husbandry practices, and disease detection in currently uninspected livestock imports.

6) Damage to food safety efforts: NAIS will not prevent foodborne illnesses, such as e. coli or salmonella contamination, because the tracking ends at the time of slaughter. Food safety is better served by focusing on programs such as increased testing for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or Mad Cow), improved oversight of slaughterhouses and food processing facilities, and increased inspections of imported foods. Programs such as the NAIS are unfair burdens for small, organic and sustainable farms.

Radiant Tea Party and the Crazy Hour

I KNOW that there are other people who can relate to this.... Do you ever settle at the end of the day and think to yourself, "Was that only this morning? Seems like about 3 days ago!" Some busy days are like that around here, when you do many different things that would sometimes BE the whole day. Yesterday was one. Heck, just suppertime was one!

Lately I've been spending my Wednesdays at Radiance. It's nice to work a day away from home each week. Gives me a reason to wear something other than t-shirts. We (Sarah Campbell and I) also are doing lunchhour workshops from noon to 1:30 each week, and that's fun too!

Yesterday was a tea blending workshop.

The table was set with an extraordinary array of ingredients, utensils and pots from which to sample. We had heat-sealable teabags and a handy iron to seal up the blends the participants blended. Afterwards we enjoyed our own lunches (along with co-owner Kara) at the table, sipping "Love Your Liver" tea made with yummy roots, into which we'd added a pinch of echinacea to combat some of the yuckies going around.

During the day the weather was just a messy, grumpy, gray mess. Snow, sleet, rain, and dark skies. Yuck. When it was time for me to head back up the hill, I could see the ice freezing on the road, and there was a cold fog moving in. Part way home, I turned around and chose a different route in order to avoid a steep and windy hill that I knew hadn't been treated (and sure enough, the cinder truck passed as soon as I got home). It was so good to get home, and I anticipated settling in for the night in some cushy sweats or even maybe pajamas.
But it was chilly. At first it seemed like maybe the bug going around bit me, but then upon picking up a ceramic mug, it became clear that the air was COLD. Looking at the thermostat, it quickly sunk in... the furnace wasn't working.
The first call is always to my sister's husband. All of the younger siblings consider him a big brother. We were just talking about it the other night, and once again that proved true last night.
While we were on the phone, there was a *beep* on the line.
Molly's truck wouldn't start, and she was in town.
All worked out ok - nephew Rob went to rescue Molly.
The furnace guy was here til 11 last night, and with any luck we'll have heat again this afternoon. Hmmmm.

And we awoke to this vision this morning:

How many days does that seem like to you? I'm going to stick with three.

Another stepping stone

This one was so easy - it took no time at all to make it. The country quilt-ish looking tile in the center was the inspiration for the colors I chose (along with the limitations set by my small stash of tiles. In fact, the brown tiles on the edges were a last minute decision due to the lack of enough red, blue or green to finish it off. But I like the brown tiles there, go figure.)
I mixed a country blue acrylic paint into the dry grout instead of investing in grout colorant, hoping for a blue grout - but it turned out kinda bluish gray. Which is okay.

I picked the center tile up for pennies at a garage sale years ago, thinking it would be a cute refrigerator magnet, but I never got around to gluing a magnet on the back of it. A good use for some of those kitschy decorative tiles that turn up at the thrift store ... I just found three tiles there with a 1960's Pennsylvania Dutch theme that must have hung in some homemaker's kitchen for decades. They're almost too cute to use for a stepping stone, so I'll hang onto them for a while before I decide how to use them. I love kitsch, but they'd sure make a cool series of stepping stones.

Finding Green in the Herb Garden!

Just went out to the herb garden and took this picture. The chive babies have progressed and this is an ornamental sorrel called blood sorrel or bloody dock or Rumex sanguineus. It likes it wet. This one to the left survived in spite of not being near the water. It does not have the sharp lemon flavor that regular sorrel or Rumex acetosa has. So use it as a little punch of color in the garden.

Fermented Honey

In that last blog about fermentation, I forgot to mention some of my favorite fermented foods, so I'll amend that list now. Black tea leaves, cocoa beans, and honey are all fermented into ingredients for wonderful treats - tea, chocolate, and mead.
Hopman's Beer and Wine Making Supplies store had mead making kits on sale last weekend, and I brought one home. Never too old to learn something new ... The directions were included, the process was easy, and in three weeks our mead made with Michigan honey should be ready to bottle up and age. Can't beat that!

An Herbal Gem-Mulberry Creek Herb Farm

One of my favorite catalogs came the other day from Mulberry Creek Herb Farm in Huron, Ohio. It is three hours away from us, but I have loved each time I go because they have such unique and special organic herbs, veggies and miniatures plants. Mark and Karen Langan and their kids have such a special place. Let's cut to the chase. Karen's letter in the inside cover usually covers the events of the past year and the activities to come in the current one. The title of this year's letter is "Farewell from Mulberry Creek?" I talked with my Herbal Companion today and she thinks that they are ending their mail order portion of their business only! In the inside of the catalog there is a letter to the local community which talks about continuing "in business for another year (Thank God!). We intend on staying that way until we retire to an "easier" lifestyle. (in other words, another 25 years)." Hopefully that is the way it is, but in the body of the inside cover letter is this sentence, "Short of a miracle, this will be our last season."!!! I've been too much in shock to e-mail them to find out. I'm asking if you live in the Sandusky/Huron area or Ohio or surrounding states in close proximity to visit this wonderful herb nursery. They will have their annual herb fair on Saturday, June 27th (10 AM to 5 PM) and Sunday, June 28th (Noon to 5 PM) featuring Ireland & "Going Greener". It is $5.00 per adult (includes 1 free herb) and kids and classes are free. I'm planning on going with the Herbal Husband! Keep this herbal gem going!

Birthdays galore and wandering off topic

It was a birthday weekend! Abe Lincoln, my fave president; my son Skip, an original Valentine baby who finally admitted it was okay, in fact all right, celebrating his birthday on a significant Hallmark holiday; AND yesterday we celebrated our granddaughter Kayla's third birthday. Oh, time does fly.
Here's a photo of our beautiful B'day girl!
Grandma can never get her to hold still and smile for a photo, but the frosting did.


Speaking of birthdays, in a gardening sense we're celebrating a biggie this year, Darwin's 200th birthday. I was listening to NPR's Joe Palka on All Things Considered (link) reporting on the fascination that worms held in the later life studies of Charles Darwin. Darwin was apparently an earthworm aficionado...
It was an interesting human interest story - telling how the scientist at home involved his young sons in the scientific method - one of his children playing a bassoon to the worm bed to see how worms responded to the vibrations.
And noting the importance of his seminal book on the value of earthworms to human agriculture, The Formation of Vegetable Mould through the Action of Worms. Which you can read online, here (link) or in scanned book form here (link).
Anyway, today I was listening to Tom Hartmann demonstrating how to successfully debate an anti-Darwinist who had no concept of historical context (link). Sometimes I wonder at Hartmann giving so much free air time to proud members of the Know Nothing Party, but then I'm reminded that Tom is teaching by example how to counter the prevailing meme. But I'm diverging from my train of thought here. Back to Darwin's worms!
Recalling the previous story on NPR led me to Google Darwin and earthworm, and I found this interesting article from Wired Science dot com above the fold:

Darwin, Earthworms and the Importance of Individuality
By Brandon Keim
October 14, 2008
http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/10/darwin-earthwor.html

(snip - The beginning of the article talks about a traditional activity called worm grunting.)

"Darwin's worm research began shortly after his historic voyage on the Beagle, culminating four decades later with the 1881 publication of Action of Worms; he showed, among other things, that earthworms do not respond to the notes of a whistle, a piano or a bassoon, and are "indifferent to shouts."

He also realized that England's lush topsoil was the product of ceaseless soil consumption and defecation by earthworms: about 54,000 per acre, depositing ten tons of fresh soil atop each acre of English countryside, every single year.

"It may be doubted whether there are any other animals which have played so important a part in the history of the world as have these lowly, organized creatures," Darwin wrote.

This now-forgotten fascination was chronicled by David Quammen in an essay entitled "Thinking About Earthworms." To Quammen, Darwin didn't merely illuminate the importance of these underestimated invertebrates, but the importance of thinking individually.

"At the time, evolution by natural selection was the hottest idea in science; yet Charles Darwin spent his last year of work thinking about earthworms. And thank goodness he did," wrote Quammen. "More and more in recent years, we are all thinking about the same things at the same time.... Break stride. Wander off mentally. Pick a subject so perversely obscure that it can't help but have neglected significance."

That is, after all, what Darwin did. What about you?


This image is borrowed from the Wired article.

The Essential Herbal - Mar/Apr '09

The newest issue of The Essential Herbal magazine is in the mail, heading to eager subscribers so now there is a moment to post the cover and table of contents here for you to peruse. If you've never seen the magazine, there is a link to a free pdf of a back issue to check out over there >>>. The Essential Herbal is a print magazine that comes out every 2 months, written by, for, and about herbie people and the things they love - HERBS!

Although it is mid-February, we're having a temporary thaw here. This new issue is spring-y and has the feel of a new season in the garden all over it! Some of the suggestions that we got notes about have already been implemented. The crossword puzzle has been made easier to read, there is an article focusing on the herbs of one region of the world (and that will be a series), and we also have something for the people who were looking for herbal gift baskets (Easter baskets this time)! I am extremely happy with the way this issue came out, and think you will enjoy it too!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Crossword Puzzle
Field Notes - what is happening to herbalists right now?
Cocoa for Health, Cindy Jones... that's right, it's GOOD for you!
Flower Essences Part 2, Kristina Haslam... learn to make your own flower essences with this series.
Beautiful Benjamin, Gale Lascala...a kindred spirit who loves the wild native spring flowers.
List Article...What would you most like to learn about herbs?
Down on the Farm, Mail-order Herb Plants-Garden in a Box, Michele Brown & Pat Stewart...the care and feeding of plants that arrive in the mail.
Spring Time Herbal Healing Checklist for Allergy Sufferers, Cory Trusty...Learn to calm allergies with herbs.
Separation Anxiety and Stress - not just for Humans Anymore! by Kathi Garrison... help for lonely pups.
It's all in the Planning, Susan Evans... getting ready to start a new garden requires thought.
Planning the Herb Garden, Mary Ellen Wilcox... a different take on beginning a garden (with recipes).
Dandelions & Lightningbugs, Jill Beebout... A tale of the moon and the sun, and how they share the sky.
Beeswax - White or Yellow? by Marti Graham... The difference between grades of beeswax.
Getting to Know Your Soil, Pat Myers... Loam? Peat? Limestone? Pat explains and tells you how to fix yours.
Herbal Easter Baskets, Betsy May... Lots of great ideas for the friends you'd love to gift this spring with a basket of goodies!
Louisiana Lagniappe *see below- Herbed Shrimp Salad in Avocado, Sarah Liberta... mmm, MMMmmm.
The Global Herbal - Africa, Marita Orr...Herbal wisdom from around the globe.
Adventure in Junk Gardening, Barbara Will...Barb takes one person's junk and turns it into treasure.
Strawberry Drinks, Maggie Howe... A selection of delightful, refreshing beverages.

* Sarah's recipe got mangled somehow, and there are a few important words missing. Here it is:


HERBED SHRIMP SALAD IN AVOCADO
by Sarah Liberta

The pure, clean flavors of fresh herbs and a touch of lemon juice accent the taste of the sea in this perennial favorite. The Jerusalem artichoke adds a sweet, smoky surprise.

2 large avocados
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 pound large shrimp, boiled in well-seasoned broth, chilled, peeled and deveined
1 English cucumber, chopped
1 cup grape tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1/4 cup of sweet onion, finely diced
1/4 cup of celery, finely diced
1/2 cup of Jerusalem artichoke, chopped
1 Tbsp. sweet marjoram
1 Tbsp. parsley
1 Tbsp. lemon balm
1 Tbsp. chives
marjoram blossoms and other small edible flowers
balsamic vinegar
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

Put 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a small skillet. Add onion and celery, stirring until they begin to wilt. Add artichoke, season with salt and pepper, and sauté about 3-4 minutes. Set aside to cool. Split avocados and remove pits. Use a large spoon to remove the flesh without breaking the shell. Coarsely chop avocado, place in a large bowl and toss with lemon juice to prevent darkening. Set aside 4 whole shrimp; chop the remainder into bite-size pieces and add to avocados. Add cucumber, tomatoes, onion, celery and artichoke. Coarsely chop herbs and add all but 1 tsp. to the bowl. Salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with vinegar and oil. Toss to coat all ingredients. Mound 1/4 of salad into each of the avocado shells and arrange on 4 plates lined with lettuce leaves. Top each portion with the reserved shrimp, remaining herbs and garnish with edible flowers.

Herbal Husband Loved the Valentine's Dinner!

The Chicken Rice Divan looks a little messy, but it was really delicious! The Herbal Husband loved it! Here is the recipe from the Three Rivers Cookbook:

Chicken Rice Divan

2 10-oz. pkgs. frozen broccoli spears
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
6 large slices cooked chicken or 2 cups cubed chicken
salt & pepper
1 cup cooked rice

White Sauce:

2 tbsp. butter or margarine
2 tbsp. flour
1 cup milk
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 cup dairy sour cream

Cook broccoli according to directions; drain. Arrange in 11-1/2" by 7-1/2" by 1-1/2" baking dish. Sprinkle with half the cheese. Top with chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon on cooked rice. Prepare white sauce: Melt butter, blend in flour, add milk all at once. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and bubbles. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice; gently fold in sour cream, and pour over chicken. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned.

Serves: 6
(I doubled the sauce recipe and you will need a larger container if you double the sauce. I also used an herbal salt along with pepper when I seasoned the chicken layer.)

Hope you enjoyed your Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day and What's for Dessert?

That's the first words out of the Herbal Husband's mouth this morning! I volunteered to cook today! What was I thinking? Maybe that we have a waffle iron that makes heart shaped waffles! Perfect for today. You can see that the fork and knife were poised to demolish those waffles! They were also protecting his food. Getting ready for dinner tonight.
There's a lot going on on that table! Here is our dinner table for tonight. I'm making Chicken Divan and rolls and what's for dessert is plain cheesecake. Yes, he likes plain jello too. Please don't make me explain. I don't have an explanation.

I gave this heart to the Herbal Husband 24 years ago and I thought it was time to give it to him again.














It has inside an angel to watch over you! It is done by my favorite folk artist, Nancy Thomas. Hope you are enjoying the day with someone you love.

St. Valentine and Tussie Mussies!

Valentine's Day in early Roman days was thought to be the start of pairing for birds so the emphasis on love and its messages. Samuel Pepys is credited with recording the first account of sending the modern paper valentine. This little booklet from Adelma Simmons and Caprilands talks of having a party and giving tussie mussies as a gift to the party goers. The tussie mussie on the left was given to a friend as a congratulatory bouquet when she became a registered architect. I usually put roses for love and grace for the pink roses, rosemary for remembrance, mint for wisdom, some sage for long life and good health, lemon balm for the pleasant company of friends and scented geranium for preference. This was made in the summer and Adelma talks about her tussie mussies being limited to what is in the greenhouse in February. Maybe surprise your significant other not tomorrow, but later in the year when spring brings up the first herbs. I'll have more about our Valentine's Day tomorrow. I'm going to postpone making the sugar cookies until next week. Another treat for the Herbal Husband! He always enjoys herbal treats any time of the year!

The Digestive System: An Herbalist's Perspective

Why is digestion important?

Unless something goes wrong it’s easy to stop thinking about the food that goes into your mouth until it comes out the other end, hopefully 12 – 24 hours later. Digestion is largely involuntary, meaning that, after you’ve done the conscious act of chewing and swallowing, your amazingly intelligent body takes over.

To learn more about how herbalists approach poor digestion click here. 

We can’t necessarily say that one system of the body is more important than the other, as we need all of them to operate optimally. However, special props can be given to the digestive system. In this set of organs, mucosa, secretions, and nerves lies the ability to turn nutritious food, which is completely unusable in its whole form, to molecules tiny enough for the body to assimilate and use for various functions. I’ll say it here, and probably a 100 more times before I am done with this series, the body is absolutely amazing.
Herbalist, Michael Tierra, says that in the Ayurvedic system, digestion is the key to overall health. He continues further to say that, in Traditional Chinese Medicine, disease is said to begin in the stomach.

As important as the digestive functions are, herbalist David Winston reports that up to 2/3 of his clientele show signs of impaired digestion. You can probably imagine that if a body is not digesting food properly then it’s not getting the essential nutrients the whole body needs for vibrant health throughout the whole body. But before we explore sluggish systems and various pathologies in the digestive system let’s expand on how exactly it works.

The Digestive Process
(Or A Day in the Life of Your Food)

As stated above, the digestive process starts with the voluntary action of the intake, chewing, and swallowing of food. Normally your salivary glands produce just enough saliva to keep your mouth moist, but even before the food hits your tongue, your salivary glands are ideally secreting extra saliva. About 1 to 3 pints of saliva a day is produced in the mouth and yes, you can have too much or too little. Saliva is mostly made up of water but also includes special enzymes used to break down starches and sugars. The salivary reflex is started when you smell delicious food or eat sour or bitter foods.

We’ve all heard that we need to chew our food well (so you do right?). Chewing is important as the first step in changing the food into smaller molecules. It also allows for the mixing of saliva with the food to further break down starches and sugars. Besides saliva, your tongue, teeth, and gums all play an important role in this process.

Once you’ve swallowed your hopefully well-chewed food (called the bolus), it enters the esophagus. The esophagus is lined with muscles and the involuntary muscle action of peristalsis helps to move the food down to your stomach. This means that you could hypothetically eat while standing on your head, although such an action is not advised or endorsed by this author. The voyage from being swallowed to entering the stomach takes about 2 to 3 seconds.

At the bottom of the esophagus is the lower esophageal sphincter, which is a ring-like muscle that creates a barrier between the esophagus and the stomach. This sphincter relaxes when food enters the stomach, and tightens up again once the food has passed. Problems arise when this sphincter remains relaxed, allowing for the gastric juices of the stomach to rise into the esophagus, creating what you think would be called esophageal burn but, instead, somebody named it heartburn, overlooking the fact it has nothing to do with your heart. (I admit, however, that heartburn is much easier to say.)
Heartburn is often treated allopathically with antacids, which neutralize the acids in your stomach. Taking antacids may alleviate the pain for the time however they also severely hamper digestion, creating even more problems down the line. Herbalist David Winston says it’s important to determine the cause of the heartburn, whether from too much stomach acid, or from a relaxed esophageal sphincter, and then work to find a solution from there. His CD on digestion is very illuminating and is referenced in the suggested readings at the end of this article.

The Stomach

Once your food has made it to your stomach it may be there for up to a couple of hours. The stomach has three important physical functions. It stores consumed food and liquid, it mixes this with gastric juices to further break it down into a liquid, and, lastly, it slowly empties the food (now called chyme) into the small intestine (which is by no means small by the way).

The stomach is lined with mucosa that helps to protect it from the intense acids it produces to break down food. This specialized mucosa does not allow for much absorption of nutrients although it does break down some water, some electrolytes, certain drugs (especially aspirin), and alcohol. (This is why tinctures act on the body so quickly.)
Much of the digestive system is made up of mucosal tissue. When inflamed due to chronic inflammatory processes (Crohn’s disease, ulcers), or acute inflammation (diarrhea, heartburn), demulcent herbs such as marshmallow root, comfrey, and slippery elm can be used to soothe the irritated tissue. (Please read up on the controversial comfrey before taking it yourself.)

How much time your food stays in the stomach depends a lot on the type of food that you ate. Carbohydrates stay in the stomach for the least amount of time, followed by proteins, and then fats. (Knowing how fast your body metabolizes food is part of what can help you to determine which foods work best for you. For example, if your body has a fast metabolism, eating too many carbohydrates can leave you with frequent hunger and on a roller coaster of fluctuating energy. If, on the other hand, you have a slower metabolism, eating too much fat can leave you feeling too full and heavy long after you’ve eaten.)

Small Intestine

Once your stomach has finished processing the chyme, it slowly enters it into the small intestine where 90% of the digestive function takes place. This hollow organ is an average of 22 feet long in an adult and is from 1.5 to 2 inches wide. It is covered in a mucosal lining along with small villi that all help to absorb the nutrients that will be assimilable by the body with the help of several digestive juices from the liver, pancreas, and the small intestine.

Bile

Bile is produced by your liver and stored in your gallbladder between meal times. When you start to eat, especially if there are bitter tastes in your food, the liver produces bile and the gallbladder squeezes out bile through ducts that enter into the small intestine. The bile has the specific action of breaking down fats.

Pancreatic enzymes

The pancreas produces a wide range of enzymes that further break down the carbohydrates, proteins, and fats in your food.

As your food changes into smaller and smaller molecules with the help of these various digestive juices it becomes ready for absorption through the small intestine.

Absorption

With the help of these digestive juices the chyme is broken down into smaller and smaller molecules and then finally absorbed into the circulatory system. Fat-soluble vitamins are stored in the liver and adipose of the body, while extra water-soluble vitamins are excreted through the urine. Water is also absorbed through the walls of the small intestine. Twenty two feet later it begins a slow entry into the large intestine.

Large Intestine

The large intestine has several roles. It absorbs most of the remaining water as well as a few vitamins and electrolytes. It also holds the chyme until ready for evacuation.
One interesting thing about the large intestine is the ascending colon. As the name suggests, it literally travels up your right side before becoming the horizontal transverse colon, and then finally the sigmoid portion which travels down and ends at the anus. In view of this anatomy, it makes sitting on a toilet to defecate a very unnatural phenomenon because it forces your body to work against gravity. Much more appropriate is to squat, which arranges your large intestine in a way that facilitates defecation. If you look around the world, squatting is much more common than our more modern, and supposedly superior, porcelain thrones.

The large intestine (and small intestine) is home to an amazing amount of bacteria that participate in further fermenting and breaking down your food. (Herbalist Chanchal Cabrera says that the bacteria in your colon could weigh as much as three pounds!). It is this fermentation that causes gas and flatulence. Gas can be an annoying nuisance or even extremely painful. Carminatives such as mints, fennel, chamomile, cardamom, and thyme are aromatic herbs that help to expel gas. Cooking with these herbs can help a problem before it starts. (This practice is inherent in some cultures, which is why you always find fennel candy as you walk out of the Indian restaurant after eating a meal; wonderfully spiced with carminatives.)

In a healthy person these bacteria are varied and abundant. Bacteria can become easily imbalanced with the use of antibiotics, diarrhea, poor food choices such as an abundance of sugar, and extreme colon cleansing programs. Traditional cultures around the world ate small amounts of fermented foods with every meal. This wisdom can be employed today to create and maintain a healthy balance in your colon. Some examples of fermented foods are kim chee, sauerkraut, miso, kefir, beet kvass and many more.

Appendix

When researching for this article I ran into several references amazingly still referring to the appendix as useless. (I have a hard time believing that this incredible human body contains useless organs.) In fact recent research suggests that the appendix plays a huge role in the immune system. Herbalist Jim McDonald says there’s research showing it may also repopulate the bowel with healthy bacteria after it has been purged.

After the remaining nutrients and water are absorbed, the same peristalsis action that moved the food down your esophagus pipe now acts in the large intestine, moving it closer to the exit hole and creating the reflex to defecate. All that remains is some water, indigestible food, bacteria, products of bacterial decomposition, and inorganic salts.
Diarrhea happens when the food is moved through the system too quickly and water is not properly absorbed. This can happen because of irritants in the intestines. Astringents like blackberry and raspberry leaves can be taken to tone the tissue for better absorption, although for the most part it’s a good idea to initially let your body expel whatever it is trying to get rid of. The focus should be on staying hydrated and getting electrolytes.

Constipation, on the other hand, is when the fecal matter stays in the large intestine too long. Most commonly, this can happen from both hyper or hypo tonic tissue, lack of fiber in the diet, dehydration, lack of exercise, or excess mucous. Addressing these issues is much more effective in the long run than laxatives, herbal or otherwise.

David Winston recommends that transit time, the time food enters your mouth to the time it leaves your body, is around 12 to 24 hours. To determine your transit time eat a nice serving of cooked beets and then record the time until you notice them on the other end. A nice bowl of borscht should do it.

What controls all these processes?

Although I have tried to mainly focus on the organs of digestion, it’s impossible to cut the digestive system out of the body without at least acknowledging some other important roles. The nervous system, hormones, and the circulation system administer different actions in harmony with the digestive system, leading to the stimulation of digestive juices, reflexes to keep things moving, and then carrying the digested nutrients to the various parts of the body. In-depth discussion of these tasks could last another fives pages, and I am already feeling your waning energy. Please just take note of these forces and we’ll end the article with some suggestions on healthy digestion as well as further reading.

Ideas for healthy digestion

1. Eat healthy food according to your constitution. To determine which foods work best for you I highly recommend the book Metabolic Typing. Rather than proclaiming dietary dogma it teaches self awareness to help a person actually figure out which foods, what size of meals, the best times of day for eating, etc, work for them.
2. Eliminate food that you are allergic or sensitive to. Common sensitivities are wheat, dairy, and soy.
3. Chew your food well. There’s no need to count to 100, just be sure that your food is well mashed before swallowing.
4. Stay hydrated, but limit large amounts of liquids before, during, and after meals. This can dilute your digestive juices, impairing the breakdown of your food.
5. Avoid extreme physical activity directly following meal times.
6. Avoid frozen and iced beverages and foods at meal-time. The digestive process needs warmth, and is hampered by excessive coldness.
7. Eat until you are only ¾ full.
8. Eat fermented foods with your meal. Miso, sauerkraut, kefir, beet kvass, etc.
9. Eat your bitters. Bitter foods and herbs stimulate the salivary glands and the expulsion of bile, all facilitating digestion. Bitters include dandelion leaves, orange peels, gentian, yellow dock, and hops.
10. Eat sitting down. Avoid watching TV or reading while eating.
11. Don’t eat when tense, angry, or fearful. These emotions have direct effects on your nervous system, which in turn affects digestion.
12. Avoid harsh cleansing programs like gall bladder flushes and colon cleansing.
13. Enjoy your meal. In Ayurveda it’s said that singing before and after a meal promotes digestion.

Suggested Reading

David Winston, Digestion CD from the Herbal Therapeutics Library

Metabolic Typing, William Wolcott. This book helps you to determine which foods work best for you.

Herbs for the Digestive System, article by Jim McDonald

Jim McDonald’s Article Index. I used this resource extensively for the article. Here you will find many articles related to specific pathologies of the digestive tract. Many thanks to Jim for putting together such quality articles in one easy-to-locate place.

I particularly referenced the following from this index:
Phytotherapeutic approaches to lower bowel disease Pt1 and Pt2 by Chanchal Cabrera. 

Great look at digestive health and many chronic issues.
Herbalist's View - Digestion by 7song

Principles of Anatomy &f Physiology, Tortora, Grabowski. For an in-depth look at the digestive system.

Thanks to http://eatwellgetwell.wordpress.com/ for the image.

This article was written to give you a brief view of the digestive system interspersed with herbalists’ perspectives on digestive health and digestive pathologies. It is not meant to treat, diagnose, or cure.

This article was originally written for HerbMentor.com as part of the Anatomy and Physiology for Herbalists series.